Vehicle and control method thereof

ABSTRACT

A vehicle may accurately recognize a voice command of a speaker by identifying the speaker who desires to use a voice recognition function. In particular, the vehicle includes: a microphone array including a first microphone and a second microphone; a button configured to activate a voice recognition system; a sensor configured to detect a contact area of a finger pressing the button. The voice recognition system is configured to: determine a location of a speaker who presses the button based on the contact area; select the first microphone and the second microphone as a main microphone and an auxiliary microphone, respectively, based on a determination that the speaker is located in a first seat; and select the second microphone and the first microphone as the main microphone and the auxiliary microphone, respectively, based on a determination that the speaker is located in a second seat.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims under 35 U.S.C. § 119 priority to Korean PatentApplication No. 10-2021-0181322, filed on Dec. 17, 2021 in the KoreanIntellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is incorporatedherein by reference.

BACKGROUND 1. Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to a vehicle and a control method thereofthat may conveniently control various functions of the vehicle through avoice command.

2. Background Art

A voice recognition system is capable of recognizing a user's speech andproviding a service corresponding to the recognized speech.

Recently, a variety of services using the voice recognition system areprovided, and in particular, when an occupant in a vehicle says acommand for controlling a function of the vehicle, the correspondingfunction may be controlled according to an occupant's intention.

Since a vehicle is equipped with a variety of functions, an occupant maycontrol the various functions through a speech command including acontrol object and a control command for the control object.

In order to accurately recognize speeches of occupants in a vehicle,microphones for each seat are required to be mounted. However, theincreased number of microphones may lead to a rise in costs.

SUMMARY

The present disclosure provides a vehicle and a control method thereofthat may accurately recognize a voice command of a speaker byidentifying the speaker who desires to use a speech recognitionfunction.

Additional aspects of the present disclosure should be set forth in partin the following description and, in part, should be obvious from thedescription, or may be learned by practice of the disclosure.

According to an embodiment of the disclosure, a vehicle includes: amicrophone array including a first microphone and a second microphone; avoice recognition system configured to be activated by a button; asensor configured to detect a contact area of a finger pressing thebutton. The voice recognition system is configured to: determine alocation of a speaker who presses the button based on the contact area,select the first microphone and the second microphone as a mainmicrophone and an auxiliary microphone, respectively, based on adetermination that the speaker is located in a first seat, and selectthe second microphone and the first microphone as the main microphoneand the auxiliary microphone, respectively, based on a determinationthat the speaker is located in a second seat.

In another embodiment, the voice recognition system is configured toreceive main audio data from the main microphone, receive auxiliaryaudio data from the auxiliary microphone, remove a noise signal includedin the main audio data based on the auxiliary audio data, and identify avoice command of the speaker based on the main audio data from which thenoise signal is removed.

In particular, a distance between the first microphone and the firstseat is shorter than a distance between the second microphone and thefirst seat, and a distance between the second microphone and the secondseat is shorter than a distance between the first microphone and thesecond seat.

In another embodiment, the voice recognition system is configured todetermine a contact direction of the finger based on the contact area,determine that the speaker is located in the first seat based on adetermination that the contact direction is a first direction, anddetermine that the speaker is located in the second seat based on adetermination that the contact direction is a second direction.

In one embodiment, the first direction is toward the second seat, andthe second direction is toward the first seat.

In another embodiment, the voice recognition system is configured toselect the first microphone and the second microphone as the mainmicrophone, based on the location of the speaker not being determined.

In another embodiment, the vehicle further includes: a first weightsensor configured to detect a weight of a first occupant sitting in thefirst seat; and a second weight sensor configured to detect a weight ofa second occupant sitting in the second seat. In particular, the voicerecognition system is configured to: estimate a location of the speakerbased on the contact area, estimate a location of the speaker based onthe weight of the first occupant and the weight of the second occupant,and determine the location of the speaker, based on the location of thespeaker estimated based on the contact area being identical to thelocation of the speaker estimated based on the weight of the firstoccupant and the weight of the second occupant.

In another embodiment, the voice recognition system is configured todetermine the location of the speaker as the first seat based on ahistory where the weight of the first occupant is changed by a presetvalue for a preset period of time before the button is pressed beingexistent and a history where the weight of the second occupant ischanged by the preset value for the preset period of time before thebutton is pressed being non-existent.

In another embodiment, the voice recognition system is configured todetermine, as the location of the speaker, the location of the speakerestimated based on the contact area, when a history where the weight ofthe first occupant and the weight of the second occupant are changed bya preset value for a preset period of time before the button is pressedis non-existent.

In another embodiment, the voice recognition system is configured todetermine the first microphone and the second microphone as the mainmicrophone, based on the location of the speaker estimated based on thecontact area being different from the location of the speaker estimatedbased on the weight of the first occupant and the weight of the secondoccupant.

According to another embodiment of the present disclosure, there isprovided a control method of a vehicle including: a microphone arrayincluding a first microphone and a second microphone, a buttonconfigured to activate a voice recognition system, and a sensorconfigured to detect a contact area of a finger pressing the button. Thecontrol method includes: determining a location of a speaker who pressesthe button based on the contact area, selecting the first microphone andthe second microphone as a main microphone and an auxiliary microphone,respectively, based on a determination that the speaker is located in afirst seat, and selecting the second microphone and the first microphoneas the main microphone and the auxiliary microphone, respectively, basedon a determination that the speaker is located in a second seat.

In another embodiment, the control method of the vehicle furtherincludes: receiving main audio data from the main microphone; receivingauxiliary audio data from the auxiliary microphone; removing a noisesignal included in the main audio data based on the auxiliary audiodata; and identifying a voice command of the speaker based on the mainaudio data from which the noise signal is removed.

In one embodiment, a distance between the first microphone and the firstseat is shorter than a distance between the second microphone and thefirst seat, and a distance between the second microphone and the secondseat is shorter than a distance between the first microphone and thesecond seat.

In one embodiment, determining the location of the speaker includes:determining a contact direction of the finger based on the contact area;determining that the speaker is located in the first seat based on adetermination that the contact direction is a first direction; anddetermining that the speaker is located in the second seat based on adetermination that the contact direction is a second direction.

In one embodiment, the first direction is toward the second seat, andthe second direction is toward the first seat.

In one embodiment, the control method of the vehicle further includes:selecting the first microphone and the second microphone as the mainmicrophone based on the location of the speaker not being determined.

In one embodiment, determining the location of the speaker includes:estimating a location of the speaker based on the contact area;estimating a location of the speaker based on a weight of a firstoccupant sitting in the first seat and a weight of a second occupantsitting in the second seat; and determining the location of the speakerbased on the location of the speaker estimated based on the contact areabeing identical to the location of the speaker estimated based on theweight of the first occupant and the weight of the second occupant.

In one embodiment, estimating the location of the speaker based on theweight of the first occupant and the weight of the second occupantincludes: determining the location of the speaker as the first seat,based on a history where the weight of the first occupant is changed bya preset value for a preset period of time before the button is pressedbeing existent and a history where the weight of the second occupant ischanged by the preset value for the preset period of time before thebutton is pressed being non-existent.

In one embodiment, determining the location of the speaker includes:determining, as the location of the speaker, the location of the speakerestimated based on the contact area, when a history where the weight ofthe first occupant and the weight of the second occupant are changed bya preset value for a preset period of time before the button is pressedis non-existent.

In one embodiment, the control method of the vehicle further includes:determining the first microphone and the second microphone as the mainmicrophone, based on the location of the speaker estimated based on thecontact area being different from the location of the speaker estimatedbased on the weight of the first occupant and the weight of the secondoccupant.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and/or other aspects of the disclosure should become apparent andmore readily appreciated from the following description of theembodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings ofwhich:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a vehicleaccording to an embodiment;

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a portion of an interior of a vehicleaccording to an embodiment;

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating a control method of a vehicleaccording to an embodiment;

FIG. 4 illustrates a contact area when an occupant in a left seatpresses a start button;

FIG. 5 illustrates a contact area when an occupant in a right seatpresses a start button;

FIGS. 6A and 6B are a flowchart illustrating a control method of avehicle according to another embodiment;

FIG. 7 illustrates an example of an output value of a weight sensor withtime; and

FIG. 8 illustrates a table for describing a criterion for identifying alocation of a speaker according to a detection result of a contact areaand a detection result of a weight change.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Advantages and features of embodiments, and methods of achieving thesame should be clearly understood with reference to the accompanyingdrawings and the following detailed embodiments. However, the presentinventive concept is not limited to embodiments described herein, butmay be implemented in various different forms. Embodiments are providedin order to explain the present inventive concept for those havingordinary skill in the art.

The terms used herein are briefly described and embodiments aredescribed in detail below.

Although the terms used herein are selected from among general termsthat are currently and widely used in consideration of functions inembodiments, these may be changed according to intentions or customs ofthose skilled in the art or the advent of new technology. In addition,in a specific case, some terms may be arbitrarily selected byapplicants. In this case, meanings thereof are described in acorresponding description of embodiments. Therefore, the meanings ofterms used herein should be interpreted based on substantial meanings ofthe terms and content of this entire specification, rather than simplythe terms themselves.

Throughout this specification, when a certain part “includes” a certaincomponent, it means that another component may be further included notexcluding another component, unless otherwise defined. Moreover, termsdescribed in the specification such as “part,” “module,” and “unit,”refer to a unit of processing at least one function or operation, andmay be implemented by software, a hardware component such as afield-programmable gate array (FPGA) or an application-specificintegrated circuit (ASIC), or a combination of software and hardware.However, the terms “part,” “module,” “unit,” and the like are notlimited to software or hardware. “Part,” “module,” “unit,” and the likemay be configured in a recording medium that may be addressed or may beconfigured to be reproduced on at least one processor. Therefore,examples of the terms “part,” “module,” “unit,” and the like includesoftware components, object-oriented software components, componentssuch as class components and task components, processes, functions,properties, procedures, subroutines, segments in program codes, drivers,firmware, microcode, circuits, data, databases, data structures, tables,arrays, and variables. The components and the modules may be providedinto smaller number of components and modules such that the respectivecomponent and modules may be merged in respect to the functionality.

Reference numerals used for method stages are just used for convenienceof explanation, but not to limit an order of the stages. Thus, unlessthe context clearly dictates otherwise, the written order may bepracticed otherwise.

When a component, device, element, or the like of the present disclosureis described as having a purpose or performing an operation, function,or the like, the component, device, or element should be consideredherein as being “configured to” meet that purpose or to perform thatoperation or function.

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings, embodiments ofa vehicle and a control method thereof are described in detail so that aperson or ordinary skilled in the art can easily implement thedisclosure. In addition, parts irrelevant to description are omitted inthe drawings in order to clearly explain exemplary embodiments. In theaccompanying drawings, parts that are identical or equivalent to eachother are assigned the same reference numerals, and in the followingdescription of the embodiments, details of redundant descriptionsthereof have been omitted.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a vehicleaccording to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a portionof an interior of a vehicle according to an embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 1 , a vehicle 1 according to an embodiment may includea microphone array 100, a sensor 200, a start button 300, a voicerecognition system 400 and a plurality of electronic control units (ECU)500.

The microphone array 100 may include a plurality of microphones (e.g., afirst microphone and a second microphone 120).

The microphone array 100 may receive an audio input and generate anelectrical signal corresponding to the audio input.

The microphone array 100 may be disposed inside the vehicle 1 to receivea voice of a user located inside the vehicle 1 and the plurality ofmicrophones 110 and 120 may be disposed in an array form.

The plurality of microphones 110 and 120 may convert the audio input ofthe user (e.g., voice) into an electrical signal and transmit theelectrical signal to the voice recognition system 400.

According to various embodiments, at least one microphone (e.g., thefirst microphone 110 and/or the second microphone 120) of the pluralityof microphones may be used as a main microphone for collecting mainaudio data (e.g., a voice signal corresponding to the user's voice), andalso at least one microphone (e.g., the first microphone 110 or thesecond microphone 120) of the plurality of microphones may be used as anauxiliary microphone for collecting auxiliary audio data (e.g., a noisesignal).

According to an embodiment, the first microphone 110 and the secondmicrophone 120 may be disposed adjacent to a rear seat for collecting avoice of an occupant sitting in the rear seat.

In another embodiment, the first microphone 110 may be provided adjacentto a first seat (e.g., a rear left seat) and the second microphone 120may be provided adjacent to a second seat (e.g., a rear right seat).

In other words, a distance between the first microphone 110 and thefirst seat may be shorter than a distance between the second microphone120 and the first seat, and a distance between the second microphone 120and the second seat may be shorter than a distance between the firstmicrophone 110 and the second seat.

Hereinafter, for convenience of description, it is assumed that thefirst seat “LS” corresponds to the rear left seat, and the second seat“RS” corresponds to the rear right seat, without being limited thereto.For example, the first seat LS may refer to a driver's seat and thesecond seat RS may refer to an occupant seat located next to thedriver's seat.

In other words, the first seat LS and the second seat RS may refer toseats arranged in a direction perpendicular to a heading direction ofthe vehicle 1.

Referring to FIG. 2 , the first microphone 110 may be mounted adjacentto the first seat LS and the second microphone 120 may be mountedadjacent to the second seat RS.

However, a position of the microphone array 100 is not limited to theposition shown in FIG. 2 , and the microphone array 100 may be disposedanywhere as long as it may receive a voice of a rear seat occupant.

The microphone array 100 may be activated based on a preset conditionsatisfied. For example, the microphone array 100 may be activated basedon receiving a wake-up signal from the voice recognition system 400.

The audio data collected from the microphone array 100 may bepre-processed and transmitted to the voice recognition system 400, ormay be transmitted to the voice recognition system 400 withoutpre-processing.

According to various embodiments, first audio data collected from thefirst microphone 110 and second audio data collected from the secondmicrophone 120 may be transmitted to different front-end modules. Forexample, the first audio data may be transmitted to a first front-endmodule of the voice recognition system 400 and the second audio data maybe transmitted to a second front-end module of the voice recognitionsystem 400.

Accordingly, the voice recognition system 400 may process the firstaudio data and the second audio data, respectively.

The sensor 200 may include at least one sensor that obtains informationfor identifying a location of a speaker.

In one embodiment, the sensor 200 may include a contact area sensor 210detecting a contact area of a finger which presses the start button 300.The contact area sensor 210 may be provided in the start button 300 todetect the contact area of the finger which presses the start button300.

The contact area sensor 210 may be implemented as any type of sensorcapable of detecting the finger's contact area. For example, the contactarea sensor 210 may include a capacitive sensor for detecting acapacitance value varying according to a finger's contact and/or anultrasonic sensor for detecting the finger's contact area by irradiatingultrasonic waves and/or a pressure sensor for detecting a pressurevarying according to a finger's contact.

The contact area sensor 210 may transmit information about the contactarea to the voice recognition system 400.

In another embodiment, the sensor 200 may include a weight sensor 220that detects a weight of an occupant sitting in the first seat LS and/orthe second seat RS.

The weight sensor 220 may include a first weight sensor 220L thatdetects a weight of an occupant (hereinafter, ‘first occupant’) sittingin the first seat LS and/or a second weight sensor 220R that detects aweight of an occupant (hereinafter, ‘second occupant’) sitting in thesecond seat RS.

The weight sensor 220 may be implemented as any type of sensor capableof detecting a weight of an occupant (or package) sitting in the firstseat LS and/or the second seat RS. For example, the weight sensor 220may include a pressure sensor that detects a pressure applied to thefirst seat LS and/or the second seat RS.

The weight sensor 220 may obtain information about the weight of thefirst occupant and/or information about the weight of the secondoccupant, and transmit the information about the weight of the firstoccupant and/or the information about the weight of the second occupantto the voice recognition system 400.

The start button 300 is for activating a voice recognition function, anda user may activate the voice recognition system 400 by pressing thestart button 300.

The start button 300 may be implemented as a push switch which isshorted or open by pushing to generate an electrical signal, and/or atouchpad capable of generating an electrical signal by a touch input.However, the start button 300 is not limited to the push switch and/ortouchpad, and may be of any types, as long as it is capable ofgenerating an electrical signal by a user's physical contact.

The voice recognition system 400 may be activated based on receiving anelectrical signal from the start button 300.

According to various embodiments, the voice recognition system 400 maybe activated in a state where the start button 300 is being pressed, andbe activated for a preset period of time after the start button 300 ispressed.

The start button 300 may be disposed at a location where the firstoccupant's hand and the second occupant's hand may easily reach, forexample, a location between the first seat LS and the second seat RS.

The voice recognition system 400 may transmit, to the microphone array100, a wake-up signal for activating the microphone array 100, based onreceiving the electrical signal generated by pressing by the user fromthe start button 300.

According to an embodiment, the voice recognition system 400 and/or themicrophone array 100 may be activated only when a preset condition issatisfied, thereby saving power consumption.

The voice recognition system 400 may determine a speaker's intention byprocessing the audio data collected from the microphone array 100, andcontrol a function of the vehicle 1 corresponding to the speaker'sintention.

According to an embodiment, the voice recognition system 400 may includean audio processor for processing the audio data.

The speech processor may include a speech to text (STT) engineconverting the audio data input through the microphone array 100 to textinformation, and a dialogue manager analyzing text to determine a user'sintention included in an utterance command.

The dialogue manager may understand the user's intention correspondingto the audio data by applying a natural language understandingtechnology to text.

Specifically, the dialogue manger performs morphological analysis withrespect to an utterance command in text form, and converts an inputcharacter string into a morpheme sequence. Also, the dialogue manger mayidentify an entity name from the utterance command. The entity name is aproper noun such as names of an individual person, place andorganization, time, day, currency, terms indicating a familyrelationship, terms of various electronic devices of the vehicle 1, andthe like. Named entity recognition is for identifying an entity name ina sentence and determining a type of the identified entity name. Thedialogue manger may extract a keyword from the sentence through thenamed entity recognition to understand a meaning of the sentence.

Also, the dialogue manger may recognize a domain from the utterancecommand of the user. A domain is for identifying a subject of the user'sutterance. For example, types of the plurality of ECUs 500 which are acontrol object may be the domain. Accordingly, electronics of thevehicle 1, such as a navigation device control unit, window controlunit, ventilated seat control unit, radio control unit, sunroof controlunit, cruise function control unit, air conditioner control unit, etc.,may be a domain.

In addition, the dialogue manger may recognize a control command fromthe audio data. The control command is for identifying a purpose of theuser's speech, and may include a control command for a control object.

In one embodiment, the control command may include an ON/OFF command, afunction setting command, etc. The ON/OFF command is a command foractivating or deactivating a specific function, and the function settingcommand may include a command for setting details of a specificfunction.

In one embodiment, the function setting command may include a ‘commandto open a control object (e.g., the window control unit)’, a ‘command tochange a set temperature of a control object (e.g., the air conditionercontrol unit) to a specific temperature’, a ‘command to change a setspeed of a control object (e.g., the cruise function control unit) to aspecific speed’, a ‘command to change a frequency of a control object(e.g., the radio control unit) to a specific frequency’, a ‘command tochange a level of a control object (e.g., the ventilated seat controlunit) to a specific intensity’, a ‘command to change a mode of a controlobject (e.g., the air conditioner control unit)’, and the like.

As such, the dialogue manger may understand the user's intention basedon information such as the control command, the entity name, the domaincorresponding to the user's utterance command and extract an actioncorresponding to the user's intention.

For instance, when an ‘air conditioner’ is determined as a controlobject and ‘operation’ is determined as a control command, an actioncorresponding to the control object and control command may be definedas ‘air-conditioner(object)_ON(operator)’. Also, when a ‘window’ isdetermined as a control object and ‘open’ is determined as a controlcommand, an action corresponding to the control object and controlcommand may be defined as ‘window(object)_OPEN(operator)’.

According to various embodiments, the voice recognition system 400 mayuse the audio data, collected from one of the first microphone 110 orthe second microphone 120, as audio data for noise reduction function,and also use the audio data, collected from one of the first microphone110 or the second microphone 120, as audio data for identifying theuser's utterance command.

When the first microphone 110 is selected as the main microphone and thesecond microphone 120 is selected as the auxiliary microphone, the voicerecognition system 400 may remove a noise signal included in the firstaudio data based on the second audio data collected from the secondmicrophone 120, and the voice recognition system 400 may identify thespeaker's utterance command based on the first audio data from which thenoise signal is removed.

According to an embodiment, the voice recognition system 400 may receivea voice signal of the user through the main microphone and a noisesignal inside the vehicle 1 through the auxiliary microphone. Also, thevoice recognition system 400 may generate a noise pattern based on thenoise signal input through the auxiliary microphone and compare thenoise pattern with the voice signal received through the mainmicrophone, thereby the voice recognition system 400 may reduce a noisein the voice signal.

In one embodiment, the voice recognition system 400 may form directivityin the main microphone by using a time delay between the main audio datareceived through the main microphone and auxiliary audio data receivedthrough the auxiliary microphone.

In addition, the voice recognition system 400 may selectively adjustgain of the first microphone 110 and the second microphone 120. Forinstance, when the first microphone 110 is selected as the mainmicrophone and the second microphone 120 is selected as the auxiliarymicrophone, the voice recognition system 400 may set a gain of the firstmicrophone 110 to be higher than a gain of the second microphone 120.

The voice recognition system 400 may use one of the first microphone 110or the second microphone 120 as the auxiliary microphone and adjust again, thereby adjusting a beamforming area.

For example, by using the first microphone 110 as the main microphoneand the second microphone 120 as the auxiliary microphone, the voicerecognition system 400 may accurately recognize a voice command of thefirst occupant. Also, by using the second microphone 120 as the mainmicrophone and the first microphone 110 as the auxiliary microphone, thevoice recognition system 400 may accurately recognize a voice command ofthe second occupant.

An algorithm for implementing a beamforming method and/or noisereduction method using the first microphone 110 or the second microphone120 may be employed without limitation within a general technical scope.

The voice recognition system 400 may transmit a control signal to theplurality of ECUs 500 based on processing the first audio data and thesecond audio data.

For instance, when the speaker's voice command is intended to turn onthe air conditioner, the voice recognition system 400 may transmit acontrol signal for turning on the air conditioner to the air conditionercontrol unit of the plurality of ECUs 500.

In other words, the voice recognition system 400 may control theplurality of ECUs 500 based on the speaker's voice command.

The voice recognition system 400 may include at least one memory inwhich a program for performing the above-described operations andoperations to be described below is stored, and at least one processorfor executing the stored program.

When the voice recognition system 400 includes a plurality of memoriesand a plurality of processors, the plurality of memories and theplurality of processors may be integrated into one chip or may bephysically separated.

The plurality of ECUs 500 may perform at least one function related toelectronics of the vehicle 1.

In one embodiment, the plurality of ECUs 500 may include a navigationdevice control unit, a window control unit, a ventilated seat controlunit, a radio control unit, a sunroof control unit, a cruise functioncontrol unit, an air conditioner control unit, etc.

Based on receiving a control signal from the voice recognition system400, the plurality of ECUs 500 may control the electronics of thevehicle 1 to perform an action corresponding to the control signal.

For instance, the air conditioner control unit may turn on an airconditioner, based on receiving a control signal for turning on the airconditioner from the voice recognition system 400.

According to embodiments, the microphone array 100, the sensor 200, thestart button 300, the voice recognition system 400 and/or the pluralityof ECUs 500 may perform communication through a vehicle communicationnetwork. For example, the voice recognition system 400 may transmit acontrol signal to the plurality of ECUs 500 through the vehiclecommunication network.

The vehicle communication network may use a communication method such asEthernet, media oriented systems transport (MOST), FlexRay, controllerarea network (CAN), local interconnect network (LIN), and the like.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating a control method of a vehicleaccording to an embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 3 , an occupant (hereinafter, ‘speaker’) who desiresto use a voice recognition function by pressing the start button 300 maypress the start button 300 with the speaker's finger and the startbutton 300 may receive a start input (1000). For example, when the startbutton 300 is implemented as a push switch, the start input may refer toan electrical signal generated by pressing the push switch. When thestart button 300 is implemented as a touchpad, the start input may referto an electrical signal generated by touching the touchpad. In thisspecification, an act of pressing the start button 300 may include anyact of making physical contact with the start button 300. For example,the act of pressing the start button 300 may include an act of touchingthe start button 300 as well as an act of pushing the start button 300by applying a predetermined force.

The contact area sensor 210 may detect a contact area of the speaker'sfinger pressing the start button 300 (1100).

The voice recognition system 400 may be activated based on the startbutton 300 receiving the start input, and receive information about thecontact area detected from the contact area sensor 210.

The voice recognition system 400 may determine a location of the speakerbased on the finger's contact area.

For example, the voice recognition system 400 may determine whether thespeaker is seated in the first seat LS or the second seat RS.

FIG. 4 illustrates a contact area when an occupant in a left seatpresses a start button. FIG. 5 illustrates a contact area when anoccupant in a right seat presses a start button.

Referring to FIG. 4 , it is illustrated that a contact area “CA” when afirst occupant sitting on the first seat LS presses the start button 300located between the first seat LS and the second seat RS using the firstoccupant's finger.

Referring to FIG. 5 , it is illustrated that a contact area CA when asecond occupant sitting on the second seat RS presses the start button300 located between the first seat LS and the second seat RS using thesecond occupant's finger.

The contact area CA may be detected in an elliptical shape, but a shapeof the contact area CA may vary depending on a user's way of pressing.

The contact area CA may include a major axis “CD” and a minor axis “CW”.The major axis may refer to the longest line segment when connecting twopoints on the contact area CA, and the minor axis CW may refer to theshortest line segment when connecting two points on the contact area CA.

A contact direction may be defined as a direction from a lowermost point“CDL” of the major axis CD toward an uppermost point “CDH” of the majoraxis CD. In this instance, an upper direction refers to a front of thevehicle 1, a left direction refers to a left side of the vehicle 1, aright direction refers to a right side of the vehicle 1, and a lowerdirection refers to a rear side of the vehicle 1.

In other words, the lowermost point CDL of the major axis CD refers to apoint located at a lower side in two intersections between the majoraxis CD and an edge of the contact area CA. Also, the uppermost pointCDH of the major axis CD refers to a point located at an upper side intwo intersections between the major axis CD and the edge of the contactarea CA.

As another example, a contact direction may be defined as a directionfrom an uppermost point CWH of the minor axis CW toward a lowermostpoint CWL of the minor axis CW.

Likewise, the lowermost point CWL of the minor axis CW refers to a pointlocated at a lower side in two intersections between the minor axis CWand the edge of the contact area CA, and the uppermost point CWH of theminor axis CW refers to a point located at an upper side in twointersections between the minor axis CW and the edge of the contact areaCA.

The voice recognition system 400 may determine the contact directionbased on the contact area CA (1200).

For example, when connecting two points on the contact area CA, thevoice recognition system 400 may determine the major axis CD which isthe longest line segment, and determine a direction from the lowermostpoint CDL of the major axis CD toward the uppermost point CDH of themajor axis CD as the finger's contact direction.

Based on the contact direction being determined as a first direction,the voice recognition system 400 may determine that the speaker islocated in the first seat LS. In this instance, the first direction mayrefer to a direction tilted to the right with respect to a verticalaxis.

In other words, the first direction may refer to a direction tilted tothe right based on the front of the vehicle 1.

As another example, when connecting two points on the contact area CA,the voice recognition system 400 may determine the minor axis CW whichis the shortest line segment, and determine a direction from theuppermost point CWH of the minor axis CW toward the lowermost point CWLof the minor axis CW as the contact direction.

As shown in FIG. 4 , based on the contact direction being determined asthe first direction, the voice recognition system 400 may determine thatthe speaker is located in the first seat LS (1400). In this instance,the first direction may refer to a direction tilted to the right basedon the vertical axis.

In other words, the first direction may refer to a direction towards thesecond seat RS based on the front of the vehicle 1.

Even when the speaker sitting in the first seat LS presses the startbutton 300 from the right side by severely bending the speaker's wrist,the contact area CA shown in FIG. 4 is formed.

Specifically, when the speaker sitting in the first seat LS presses thestart button 300 from the right side by bending the speaker's wrist, thestart button 300 is in contact with the speaker's fingertip, and thusthe contact direction of the contact area CA is toward the second seatRS, as shown in FIG. 4 .

As illustrated in FIG. 5 , based on the contact direction beingdetermined as a second direction, the voice recognition system 400 maydetermine that the speaker is located in the second seat RS (1300). Inthis instance, the second direction may refer to a direction tilted tothe left based on the vertical axis.

In other words, the second direction may refer to a direction towardsthe first seat LS based on the front of the vehicle 1.

Even when the speaker sitting in the second seat RS presses the startbutton 300 from the left side by severely bending the speaker's wrist,the contact area CA shown in FIG. 5 is formed.

Specifically, when the speaker sitting in the second seat RS presses thestart button 300 from the left side by bending the speaker's wrist, thestart button 300 is in contact with the speaker's fingertip, and thusthe contact direction of the contact area CA is toward the first seatLS, as shown in FIG. 5 .

When the voice recognition system 400 may not identify a major axis andminor axis based on the contact area CA or may not identify a contactdirection, the voice recognition system 400 may not identify a locationof the speaker based on the contact area CA (1500).

In one embodiment, a location of the speaker may be identified based onthe finger's contact area with respect to the start button 300.

Based on a determination that the speaker is located in the first seatLS (1400), the voice recognition system 400 may select the firstmicrophone 110 and the second microphone 120 as a main microphone and anauxiliary microphone, respectively (1450). In other words, when thespeaker is located in the first seat LS, the voice recognition system400 may use the first microphone 110 located adjacent to the first seatLS as the main microphone for collecting a voice signal of the speaker,and use the second microphone 120 located far from the speaker as theauxiliary microphone for collecting an ambient noise signal.

As such, when it is determined that the speaker is located in the firstseat LS, the voice recognition system 400 may adjust a beamforming areaof the microphone array 100 to the first seat LS.

By contrast, based on a determination that the speaker is located in thesecond seat RS (1300), the voice recognition system 400 may select thesecond microphone 120 and the first microphone 110 as the mainmicrophone and the auxiliary microphone, respectively (1350). In otherwords, when the speaker is located in the second seat RS, the voicerecognition system 400 may use the second microphone 120 locatedadjacent to the second seat RS as the main microphone for collecting avoice signal of the speaker, and use the first microphone 110 locatedfar from the speaker as the auxiliary microphone for collecting anambient noise signal.

As such, when it is determined that the speaker is located in the secondseat RS, the voice recognition system 400 may adjust a beamforming areaof the microphone array 100 to the second seat RS.

When one of the first microphone 110 or the second microphone 120 isused as the auxiliary microphone in a state where the location of thespeaker is not identified, the voice signal of the speaker may not becollected clearly. In other words, recognizing an utterance of thespeaker by processing a voice signal including a noise signal despite alow recognition rate is more advantageous than failing to recognize theutterance of the speaker by recognizing the voice signal of the speakeras the noise signal due to an erroneous determination of the location ofthe speaker.

Accordingly, based on the location of the speaker not being identified(1500), the voice recognition system 400 may select the first microphone110 and the second microphone 120 as the main microphone (1550).

As described above, the voice recognition system 400 may select thefirst microphone 110 and the second microphone 120 as the mainmicrophone or the auxiliary microphone, respectively, and remove a noisesignal included in main audio data received from the main microphonebased on auxiliary audio data received from the auxiliary microphone.Then, the voice recognition system 400 may identify a voice command ofthe speaker based on the main audio data from which the noise signal isremoved.

The voice recognition system 400 may control the plurality of ECUs 500to perform various functions of the vehicle 1 based on the voice commandof the speaker (1600).

According to the disclosure, by identifying the location of the speakerwho desires to use a voice recognition function and using a plurality ofmicrophones included in the microphone array as the main microphone orthe auxiliary microphone, respectively, the voice signal of the speakermay be collected more clearly.

However, when the location of the speaker is identified based only onthe contact area CA, an accuracy of determining the location of thespeaker may be reduced.

Accordingly, a method of determining the location of the speaker basedon an output value of the weight sensor 220 and the contact area CA forthe start button 300 is described with reference to FIGS. 6A and 6B.

FIGS. 6A and 6B are a flowchart illustrating a control method of avehicle according to another embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 6A and 6B, the voice recognition system 400 mayreceive sensing information from the weight sensor 220 (2000).

As described above, the weight sensor 220 may include the first weightsensor 220L for detecting a first occupant and the second weight sensor220R for detecting a second occupant.

Although not illustrated, when a weight is detected by the first weightsensor 220L but a weight is not detected by the second weight sensor220R, the voice recognition system 400 may determine that a speaker islocated in the first seat LS regardless of a contact area CA.

When a weight is detected by each of the first weight sensor 220L andthe second weight sensor 220R, that is, both the first occupant and thesecond occupant are sitting in the vehicle 1, the voice recognitionsystem 400 may estimate the location of the speaker based on a change inweight detected in the first weight sensor 220L and a change in weightdetected in the second weight sensor 220R.

The first weight sensor 220L may obtain weight information of the firstoccupant in real time, and the second weight sensor 220R may obtainweight information of the second occupant in real time.

The weight information of the first occupant and the weight informationof the second occupant may be temporarily stored in a memory of thevoice recognition system 400.

FIG. 7 illustrates an example of an output value of a weight sensor withtime.

Referring to FIG. 7 , a speaker may press the start button 300 with thespeaker's finger at a point in time t0 and the start button 300 mayreceive a start input (2100).

The voice recognition system 400 may estimate a location of the speakerbased on a weight of a first occupant and a weight of a second occupantfor a preset period of time d before the point in time t0 that the startbutton 300 is pressed by the speaker (2200).

Because the speaker makes a movement or moves a center of mass of thespeaker's body to press the start button 300, a weight detected by theweight sensor 220 may change.

The voice recognition system 400 may determine, as a seat where thespeaker is seated, a seat corresponding to the weight sensor 220 (e.g.,the first weight sensor 220L or the second weight sensor 220R) where thechange in weight is detected for the preset period of time d before thepoint in time t0 that the start button 300 is pressed by the speaker.

In one embodiment, the voice recognition system 400 may estimate thelocation of the speaker as the first seat LS, when a history where theweight of the first occupant is changed by a preset value (ΔW) for thepreset period of time d before the point in time t0 that the startbutton 300 is pressed is existent and a history where the weight of thesecond occupant is changed by the preset value (ΔW) for the presetperiod of time d before the point in time t0 that the start button 300is pressed is non-existent (2300).

As another embodiment, the voice recognition system 400 may estimate thelocation of the speaker as the second seat RS, when the history wherethe weight of the first occupant is changed by the preset value (ΔW) forthe preset period of time d before the point in time t0 that the startbutton 300 is pressed is non-existent and the history where the weightof the second occupant is changed by the preset value (ΔW) for thepreset period of time d before the point in time t0 that the startbutton 300 is pressed is existent (2400).

Also, the voice recognition system 400 may not identify the location ofthe speaker, when the history where the weight of the first occupant ischanged by the preset value (ΔW) for the preset period of time d beforethe point in time t0 that the start button 300 is pressed isnon-existent and the history where the weight of the second occupant ischanged by the preset value (ΔW) for the preset period of time d beforethe point in time t0 that the start button 300 is pressed isnon-existent (2500).

The voice recognition system 400 may finally determine the location ofthe speaker, based on the location of the speaker estimated based on thecontact area CA and the location of the speaker estimated based on theoutput value of the weight sensor 220.

A method of estimating the location of the speaker based on the contactarea CA has been described above with reference to FIG. 3 .

FIG. 8 illustrates a table for describing a criterion for identifying alocation of a speaker according to a detection result of a contact areaand a detection result of a weight change.

Hereinafter, for convenience of description, a mode where the voicerecognition system 400 uses the first microphone 110 as a mainmicrophone and the second microphone 120 as an auxiliary microphone isdefined as a mode A, a mode where the voice recognition system 400 usesthe second microphone 120 as the main microphone and the firstmicrophone 110 as the auxiliary microphone is defined as a mode B, and amode where the voice recognition system 400 uses the first microphone110 and the second microphone 120 as the main microphone is defined as amode C.

Referring to FIG. 8 , the voice recognition system 400 may determine alocation of a speaker, based on a location of the speaker estimatedbased on a contact area CA being identical to a location of the speakerestimated based on a weight of a first occupant and a weight of a secondoccupant.

In one embodiment, when the location of the speaker estimated based onthe contact area CA is the first seat LS and the location of the speakerestimated based on the weight of the first occupant and the weight ofthe second occupant is the first seat LS, the voice recognition system400 may determine the first seat LS as the location of the speaker.

As another embodiment, when the location of the speaker estimated basedon the contact area CA is the second seat RS and the location of thespeaker estimated based on the weight of the first occupant and theweight of the second occupant is the second seat RS, the voicerecognition system 400 may determine the second seat RS as the locationof the speaker.

In one embodiment, when the location of the speaker estimated based onthe contact area CA is different form the location of the speakerestimated based on the weight of the first occupant and the weight ofthe second occupant, the voice recognition system 400 may not identifythe location of the speaker.

In other embodiment, when the location of the speaker estimated based onthe contact area CA is the first seat LS and the location of the speakerestimated based on the weight of the first occupant and the weight ofthe second occupant is the second seat RS, the voice recognition system400 may not determine the location of the speaker.

As another embodiment, when the location of the speaker estimated basedon the contact area CA is the second seat RS and the location of thespeaker estimated based on the weight of the first occupant and theweight of the second occupant is the first seat LS, the voicerecognition system 400 may not determine the location of the speaker.

In another form, when the location of the speaker is estimated based onthe contact area CA, but may not be estimated based on the weight of thefirst occupant and the weight of the second occupant, the voicerecognition system 400 may determine the location of the speakerestimated based on the contact area CA, as the location of the speaker.

In addition, when the location of the speaker may not be estimated basedon the contact area CA, but is estimated based on the weight of thefirst occupant and the weight of the second occupant, the voicerecognition system 400 may determine the location of the speakerestimated based on the weight of the first occupant and the weight ofthe second occupant, as the location of the speaker.

For example, when the location of the speaker estimated based on thecontact area CA is the first seat LS or the second seat RS, but thelocation of the speaker may not be estimated based on the weight of thefirst occupant and the weight of the second occupant, the voicerecognition system 400 may determine the location of the speaker as thefirst seat LS or the second seat RS.

As another embodiment, when the location of the speaker may not beestimated based on the contact area CA, but the location of the speakerestimated based on the weight of the first occupant and the weight ofthe second occupant is the first seat LS or the second seat RS, thevoice recognition system 400 may determine the location of the speakeras the first seat LS or the second seat RS.

Based on the location of the speaker being determined as the first seatLS, the voice recognition system 400 may be operated in the mode A.Also, based on the location of the speaker being determined as thesecond seat RS, the voice recognition system 400 may be operated in themode B. Further, based on the location of the speaker not beingidentified, the voice recognition system 400 may be operated in the modeC.

According to an embodiment, when the location of the speaker estimatedbased on the weight of the first occupant and the weight of the secondoccupant is the first seat LS and the location of the speaker estimatedbased on the contact area CA is the first seat LS (‘first seat’ inoperation 2350), the voice recognition system 400 may be operated in themode A (2600).

Also, when the location of the speaker estimated based on the weight ofthe first occupant and the weight of the second occupant is the firstseat LS and the location of the speaker may not be estimated based onthe contact area CA (‘unknown’ in operation 2350), the voice recognitionsystem 400 may be operated in the mode A (2600).

In addition, when the location of the speaker may not be estimated basedon the weight of the first occupant and the weight of the secondoccupant and the location of the speaker estimated based on the contactarea CA is the first seat LS (‘first seat’ in operation 2550), the voicerecognition system 400 may be operated in the mode A (2600).

According to an embodiment, when the location of the speaker estimatedbased on the weight of the first occupant and the weight of the secondoccupant is the second seat RS and the location of the speaker estimatedbased on the contact area CA is the second seat RS (‘second seat’ inoperation 2450), the voice recognition system 400 may be operated in themode B (2700).

Also, when the location of the speaker estimated based on the weight ofthe first occupant and the weight of the second occupant is the secondseat RS and the location of the speaker may not be estimated based onthe contact area CA (‘unknown’ in operation 2450), the voice recognitionsystem 400 may be operated in the mode B (2700).

In addition, when the location of the speaker may not be estimated basedon the weight of the first occupant and the weight of the secondoccupant and the location of the speaker estimated based on the contactarea CA is the second seat RS (‘second seat’ in operation 2550), thevoice recognition system 400 may be operated in the mode B (2700).

According to an embodiment, when the location of the speaker estimatedbased on the weight of the first occupant and the weight of the secondoccupant is the first seat LS and the location of the speaker estimatedbased on the contact area CA is the second seat RS (‘second seat’ inoperation 2350), the voice recognition system 400 may be operated in themode C (2800).

Also, when the location of the speaker estimated based on the weight ofthe first occupant and the weight of the second occupant is the secondseat RS and the location of the speaker estimated based on the contactarea CA is the first seat LS (‘first seat’ in operation 2450), the voicerecognition system 400 may be operated in the mode C (2800).

In addition, when the location of the speaker may not be estimated basedon the weight of the first occupant and the weight of the secondoccupant and the location of the speaker may not be estimated based onthe contact area CA (‘unknown’ in operation 2550), the voice recognitionsystem 400 may be operated in the mode C (2800).

According to one embodiment of the disclosure, by using both the contactarea sensor and the weight sensor in determining a location of aspeaker, an accuracy of determining the location of the speaker can beimproved.

Also, according to the disclosure, a voice recognition rate can beimproved by accurately determining a location of a speaker.

Also, according to one embodiment of the disclosure, a high-performancevoice recognition can be provided to a user by installing a low-costsensor in a start button instead of mounting a high-priced hardware(e.g., a microphone).

Also, according to one embodiment of the disclosure, even the vehicle 1without a weight sensor installed in a rear seat can determine alocation of a speaker based on a low-cost sensor.

Also, according to the disclosure, when a location of a speaker is notidentified accurately, by using all microphones included in a microphonearray as a main microphone, inability to recognize voice may beprevented.

As is apparent from the above, according to the disclosure, the vehicleand the control method thereof can identify a speaker who desires to usea voice recognition function and accurately recognize a voice command ofthe speaker, thereby improving a usability of a voice recognitionsystem.

According to the disclosure, the vehicle and the control method thereofcan improve a performance of voice recognition using the limited numberof microphones.

According to the disclosure, the vehicle and the control method thereofcan prevent a rise in manufacturing cost of vehicle due to an increasein the number of microphones.

Although embodiments have been described for illustrative purposes,those having ordinary skill in the art should appreciate that variousmodifications, additions and substitutions are possible, withoutdeparting from the scope and spirit of the disclosure. Therefore,embodiments have not been described for limiting purposes.

Embodiments can thus be implemented through computer readablecode/instructions in/on a medium, e.g., a computer readable medium, tocontrol at least one processing element to implement any above describedembodiment. The medium can correspond to any medium/media permitting thestoring and/or transmission of the computer readable code.

The computer-readable code can be recorded on a medium or transmittedthrough the Internet. The medium may include read only memory (ROM),random access memory (RAM), magnetic tapes, magnetic disks, flashmemories, and optical recording medium.

What is claimed is:
 1. A vehicle, comprising: a microphone arraycomprising a first microphone and a second microphone; a voicerecognition system configured to be activated by a button; and a sensorconfigured to detect a contact area of a finger pressing the button,wherein the voice recognition system is configured to: determine alocation of a speaker who presses the button based on the contact area,select the first microphone and the second microphone as a mainmicrophone and an auxiliary microphone, respectively, based on adetermination that the speaker is located in a first seat, and selectthe second microphone and the first microphone as the main microphoneand the auxiliary microphone, respectively, based on a determinationthat the speaker is located in a second seat.
 2. The vehicle of claim 1,wherein the voice recognition system is configured to: receive mainaudio data from the main microphone, receive auxiliary audio data fromthe auxiliary microphone, remove a noise signal included in the mainaudio data based on the auxiliary audio data, and identify a voicecommand of the speaker based on the main audio data from which the noisesignal is removed.
 3. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein: a distancebetween the first microphone and the first seat is shorter than adistance between the second microphone and the first seat, and adistance between the second microphone and the second seat is shorterthan a distance between the first microphone and the second seat.
 4. Thevehicle of claim 1, wherein the voice recognition system is configuredto: determine a contact direction of the finger based on the contactarea, determine that the speaker is located in the first seat based on adetermination that the contact direction is a first direction, anddetermine that the speaker is located in the second seat based on adetermination that the contact direction is a second direction.
 5. Thevehicle of claim 4, wherein the first direction is toward the secondseat, and the second direction is toward the first seat.
 6. The vehicleof claim 1, wherein the voice recognition system is configured to selectthe first microphone and the second microphone as the main microphonebased on the location of the speaker not being determined.
 7. Thevehicle of claim 1, further comprising: a first weight sensor configuredto detect a weight of a first occupant sitting in the first seat; and asecond weight sensor configured to detect a weight of a second occupantsitting in the second seat, wherein the voice recognition system isconfigured to: estimate a location of the speaker based on the contactarea, estimate a location of the speaker based on the weight of thefirst occupant and the weight of the second occupant, and determine thelocation of the speaker based on the location of the speaker estimatedbased on the contact area being identical to the location of the speakerestimated based on the weight of the first occupant and the weight ofthe second occupant.
 8. The vehicle of claim 7, wherein the voicerecognition system is configured to determine the location of thespeaker as the first seat, based on a history where the weight of thefirst occupant is changed by a preset value for a preset period of timebefore the button is pressed being existent and a history where theweight of the second occupant is changed by the preset value for thepreset period of time before the button is pressed being non-existent.9. The vehicle of claim 7, wherein the voice recognition system isconfigured to determine, as the location of the speaker, the location ofthe speaker estimated based on the contact area, when a history wherethe weight of the first occupant and the weight of the second occupantare changed by a preset value for a preset period of time before thebutton is pressed is non-existent.
 10. The vehicle of claim 7, whereinthe voice recognition system is configured to determine the firstmicrophone and the second microphone as the main microphone, based onthe location of the speaker estimated based on the contact area beingdifferent from the location of the speaker estimated based on the weightof the first occupant and the weight of the second occupant.
 11. Acontrol method of a vehicle comprising a microphone array comprising afirst microphone and a second microphone, a button to activate a voicerecognition system, and a sensor to detect a contact area of a fingerpressing the button, the control method comprising: determining alocation of a speaker who presses the button based on the contact area,selecting the first microphone and the second microphone as a mainmicrophone and an auxiliary microphone, respectively, based on adetermination that the speaker is located in a first seat, and selectingthe second microphone and the first microphone as the main microphoneand the auxiliary microphone, respectively, based on a determinationthat the speaker is located in a second seat.
 12. The control method ofclaim 11, further comprising: receiving main audio data from the mainmicrophone; receiving auxiliary audio data from the auxiliarymicrophone; removing a noise signal included in the main audio databased on the auxiliary audio data; and identifying a voice command ofthe speaker based on the main audio data from which the noise signal isremoved.
 13. The control method of claim 11, wherein a distance betweenthe first microphone and the first seat is shorter than a distancebetween the second microphone and the first seat, and a distance betweenthe second microphone and the second seat is shorter than a distancebetween the first microphone and the second seat.
 14. The control methodof claim 11, wherein determining the location of the speaker comprises:determining a contact direction of the finger based on the contact area;determining that the speaker is located in the first seat based on adetermination that the contact direction is a first direction; anddetermining that the speaker is located in the second seat based on adetermination that the contact direction is a second direction.
 15. Thecontrol method of claim 14, wherein the first direction is toward thesecond seat, and the second direction is toward the first seat.
 16. Thecontrol method of claim 11, further comprising: selecting the firstmicrophone and the second microphone as the main microphone based on thelocation of the speaker not being determined.
 17. The control method ofclaim 11, wherein determining the location of the speaker comprises:estimating a location of the speaker based on the contact area;estimating a location of the speaker based on a weight of a firstoccupant sitting in the first seat and a weight of a second occupantsitting in the second seat; and determining the location of the speakerbased on the location of the speaker estimated based on the contact areabeing identical to the location of the speaker estimated based on theweight of the first occupant and the weight of the second occupant. 18.The control method of claim 17, wherein estimating the location of thespeaker based on the weight of the first occupant and the weight of thesecond occupant comprises: determining the location of the speaker asthe first seat based on a history where the weight of the first occupantis changed by a preset value for a preset period of time before thebutton is pressed being existent and a history where the weight of thesecond occupant is changed by the preset value for the preset period oftime before the button is pressed being non-existent.
 19. The controlmethod of claim 17, wherein determining the location of the speakercomprises: determining, as the location of the speaker, the location ofthe speaker estimated based on the contact area when a history where theweight of the first occupant and the weight of the second occupant arechanged by a preset value for a preset period of time before the buttonis pressed is non-existent.
 20. The control method of claim 17, furthercomprising: determining the first microphone and the second microphoneas the main microphone based on the location of the speaker estimatedbased on the contact area being different from the location of thespeaker estimated based on the weight of the first occupant and theweight of the second occupant.